


The River

by Dorky_Hedgehog



Category: Original Work
Genre: Elves, F/F, Fantasy, Nymphs & Dryads, Songfic, this is a drabble
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-19
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-05-09 01:50:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14706833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dorky_Hedgehog/pseuds/Dorky_Hedgehog
Summary: In spring, where the mountain nymphs and forest elves put aside their differences to honor the great River Goddess, O'reika finds the girl she's only ever met in a dream.Based on the choral song "Arise, my Love"





	The River

A trail of paper lanterns glides down the sides of the mountain like a parade of fireflies, lighting up the dark sky as O'reika marches beside her fellow nymphs - her friends and her compatriots. The ground is cold against her bare feet and the last breaths of winter brush against her pale face. She holds a woven basket in her arms, filled to the brim with vibrant flowers, sweet mead, and precious stones to offer the river goddess in thanks for a forgiving winter.

 

In the distance, she spots another procession of lanterns floating towards the river from the depths forest in which she’d been forbidden from entering. Each lantern bears a silver  _ Triskelion _ , the spirals like an enchantment in comparison to her people’s  _ Awen _ , strong yet simple.

Every May, the nymphs of the mountains and the forest elves meet at the mouth of the river to awaken the Spring Goddess, who’ll bless the land with fertility and prosperity. It is the only time of year in which they put aside their differences to honor the Goddess, for there is just one river that provides life for all.

 

Within the crowd, under the shimmering lights, O’reika catches sight of a familiar face, smiling as if her feet did not ache and her arms were not empty of offerings. It was a face she knew only in slumber. Skin like the soil that nourishes the land and hair like ocean tides.

 

The girl from her dreams.

 

They’d only met once, one winter evening when the candles went out and the world fell into the hands of peaceful shadows. O'reika had fallen asleep to snow on the ground and a chill in the air, only to wake up to a field full of flowers and the sun warming her frozen fingers.

 

She took in a breath, and for a moment, she was stunned. Trees hung over her head like clouds and the sounds of chattering animals filled her ears. As if by magic, she’d stumbled upon the one place she was never to traverse.

 

The forest holds greater evils than the world could ever know, she’d been told, and to wander inside was equal to stepping into a grave. In childhood, O’reika believed the tales, but in adulthood, she is unsure. How can something so beautiful be so cruel? The forest houses the mockingbirds that sing to them in the spring and provides sweet fruit to enjoy. No, it was better to stay in the mountains, where her people resided and she was safe.

 

In time, though, she’d learned it wasn’t the forest itself that her people loathed, but those who called it home.

 

Resting under the shade of an oak tree, a figure sat strumming a wooden lyre, her long, nimble fingers plucking the strings as she hummed a simple tune. She had three rings on her fingers, the emerald on her middle finger marking her as an forest elf.

 

The girl glanced over at her and paused.

 

After what felt like an eternity, the girl’s wide eyes melted away into a grin. Without another thought, she turned back to her lyre and began a new song. She nodded at the empty space beside her, as if inviting O’reika to join her, and so she did. This girl couldn’t harm her even if she wanted to. This was a dream.

 

“You know,” the girl said as they sat side-by-side, listening to her music, “We have a legend about this.”

 

“About what?” O’reika couldn’t help but ask.

 

“This. A forest elf and mountain nymph meeting and finally bringing peace to the land. People around here don’t talk about it much, but my grandmother believed it, and she would tell me every night before I went to sleep that it would come true. Maybe not in her lifetime, or even mine, but someday.” The girl smiled. “And now here we are.”

 

_ Yes,  _ O’reika thought,  _ in a dream. _

 

That is all she remembers of that fateful night. She’d woken up tangled in her sheets, dazed but not frightened. She refused to tell anyone of her findings, afraid they will call her mad, lock her up in a cell to rot.

 

_ A crazy girl _ , they’d think her,  _ a traitor to her own. _

 

_ Unforgivable. _

 

_ Sinful. _

 

Instead, she watches as the river comes into view, and people to sink to their knees at the foot of the water. Lanterns surround them, making the water glisten and moon glow within its reflection, and they place their offerings into the water to float. Once every spot along the bank has been filled, the leader of the nymphs stands face-to-face with the elf queen, and as if to an imaginary beat, they begin to sing.

 

One-by-one, nymphs and elves alike join in, their voices ringing throughout the land, begging the Goddess to rise from the river and grace them with her love. The nymphs and the elves sing in perfect harmony, offering a warm and peaceful land for the Goddess to return to if she so desires.

 

Suddenly, the water begins to ripple, and a silhouette rises from the surface - dark hair flowing over graceful shoulders and golden eyes twinkling behind long, fluttering eyelashes. A pure white gown covers her body, and she raises her arms as if to conduct her subjects, swaying like a leaf caught in the breeze to the beat.

 

Captivated, O’reika almost misses when the girl from her dream lifts herself off her knees and weaves her way past the crowd, sprinting into the depths of the forest. For a moment, their eyes meet, and O’reika swears she hears them call to her.

 

_ “Come away.” _

 

And then she runs. She sprints through her people - her friends, her compatriots. knocking them onto their hands and knees, and then finally launching herself into the arms of her lover. Hand-in-hand, they disappear into the shadows.

 

The Goddess will be forgiving.

 


End file.
